Indian Classical Violin: The Right Beginning

June 9, 2019, 5:38 AM · Whenever we embark on a new journey it is imperative that we know our path well . Learning music is also like that. It helps to know the path so we know where we can halt and where we can speed up.

The seven basic notes that we learn in Indian Classical (Carnatic style) is the first step in this. But , many of us as students are always wondering as to why we are asked to play this patterning of notes and practice them time and again.

As an educator , I feel that as important as it is to know the path , it is also good to know why that particular route is beneficial and how it is going to help you reach your destination with a flourish. This helps in practicing with a focus. Improvisation (creating on the spot music) is the essence of Indian Classical music. Learning the basic exercises in different scales will help students create their own musical phrases which as time progresses can turn into a composition/song too.

Teaching the students the basic notes and then encouraging them to create small musical words and phrases can be compared to learning a language . First ,we learn the alphabets, then put them together to make small words and then construct sentences.

Similarly these musical phrases can be made into musical sentences and then a composition too. You can see a small example in the video .

Replies

Laurie Niles

June 15, 2019 at 04:18 AM · Padma, what are those basic patterns? As a violinist who has only really studied Western music I would love to learn more from the very, very beginning!

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